


Silesse: After the War

by kaeropteran



Category: Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu | Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War
Genre: Angst, F/M, Guilt, Possession, Royalty Struggles, Terminal Illnesses, War, man these politics are sketch, shady medieval politics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:49:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25317841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaeropteran/pseuds/kaeropteran
Summary: Exploring the northwestern country of Silesse in the years after Sigurd's war, during Lewyn's return as a figurehead king, and examining the reasons and circumstances surrounding his eventual departure.Chapter 1: The Prodigal Prince: Lewyn returns from the battle at BalhallaChapter 2: Even Without the Blood of the Gods: Erinys proves her worth as Queen of SilesseChapter 3: The Selfish King: Lewyn leaves SilesseChapter 4 onwards involves the struggles of Silesse following Lewyn's departure, which is really wandering into heavy speculation and non-canon events (unlike ch. 1-3, which are more character studies than story)Chapter 4/5: Even Without the Comfort of Your Presence (I-II): A second Silessian civil war erupts during Lewyn's absenceChapter 6: This Side of the Bars: A pair of conversations conceal a nobleman's sinister intentionsChapter 7: Even Without Any Certainty for the Future: The Lyoptr cult finds its way into SilesseChapter 8: This Gambit of Evil: A cunning nobleman takes advantage of Erinys' declining health
Relationships: Ferry | Erinys/Levn | Lewyn
Comments: 1
Kudos: 5





	1. The Prodigal Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prince Lewyn returns as King to Silesse, now a vassal state to the Empire.

In the aftermath of the Battle of Belhalla, the people of the land of wind mages and pegasus knights despaired for the loss of Prince Lewyn, the rightful heir to the throne of Silesse. The prodigal prince had returned to his kingdom but a year prior with the promise of hope and prosperity, only to lose his life fighting on foreign soil for a southern lord. But before the question of succession could come up, the newly established Empire of Grannvale crossed their borders with an army of mounted knights. 

Still suffering the wounds from the Silessian civil war, the country was in no position to defend their lands with what was left of their once famous army of pegasus knights. Not wanting to see any more destruction to her kingdom that was finally starting to unite itself, Queen Rahna surrendered to the Empire. 

At the price of her life, she ensured that Silesse, though now a vassal territory, would remain unmolested by the mainland, entrusting rulership to her daughter-in-law, Erinys, whose husband, the rightful king, had gone missing during the Massacre at Belhalla, presumed dead. 

However, a month later, Prince Lewyn was sighted on the border of the kingdom where arid wasteland met Silessian snow, barely alive, looking as if he had spent the past year walking across the entire desert. The kingdom rejoiced, and, despite the war, despite the death, life went on, the peace was kept, and the country was slowly but surely recovering, until the nobles started clamoring for war. 

* * *

"We will not rebel against the Empire." Lewyn declared before his court, his hands flat against the dark mahogany wood of the council table, resisting the urge to draw out the Forseti tome from within his robes and chase out the nobles from the castle. 

The table was filled with young, ambitious lords and their direct aides, elderly town mayors with their pages, while Lewyn stood at the head, flanked on his right by his queen and guard, Erinys, a sword at her hip.

"Your Majesty, surely with the wind mages and our new squadrons of pegasus knights, we are more than capable of taking back our land!"

Lewyn shuddered to remember the trek through the Yied Desert, and that with a whole squadron of troops? It was suicide. The desert was a deterrent on both sides -- it helped discourage an external invasion of Silesse, but if their army were to be the one crossing it, the only fate awaiting them on the other side was annihilation.

"And who will lead them?" Erinys asked, her voice stern, sensing Lewyn's distress. 

“My queen, the nobility claim partial descent from the Silesian throne, and thereby the blood of Ced the Crusader. We will lead our own armies to battle.”

“And you expect me to take charge of it all?” Lewyn asked, fearing the answer.

"Of course, there is no one more suited to lead our independence than our king. With all due respect, my liege, the power of Forseti is more than enough--"

A cold glare from Lewyn immediately silenced the young lord. 

_The cowards. They had hid away in their castles, refusing to take sides during the civil war, and now, blinded by the glory of war heroics, they wanted to fight?_

"Wars are expensive, Lord Melvar," Lewyn said, trying to keep his voice level. "Where do you suppose I find the coin to pay our soldiers? Our supplies?"

"Of course we will pay for our men. Our lands are growing more prosperous as of late, and the people--"

They were planning to tax their fiefs. Again. 

"The people are prospering because of the peace!" All of a sudden, the fatigue of hours upon hours on end of fruitless meetings and the frustration of trying to balance public opinion, nobility interests, and country prosperity caught up with him, and Lewyn slammed a fist down onto the table, almost immediately regretting it as his vassals began to murmur and frown in disapproval at his loss of decorum. 

Just as he resolved to abandon all sense of propriety and give the weak-willed mayors and the war-hungry nobles a piece of his mind, he felt Erinys’ hand pull gently at his sleeve, and he let the tension fall from his shoulders. He was so tired of court politics, tired of watching new obstacles spring up at every turn to deter the hard-won peace, tired of keeping his tenuous kingdom from falling apart. 

When he finally spoke, his voice was weary but resolute. "We are not going to war. This is final.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lewyn, Lewyn, Lewyn. 
> 
> I really wanted to do a character study on this guy, who, among the numerous fathers and father figures of FE4 really stands out as being a trash father. I could never really get over the fact that he abandoned his family (which I really do think is, at least partially, Lewyn's will, not entirely Forseti's) seemingly in favor of being a mentor to Seliph. 
> 
> I also found it strange that he seems to have returned to Silesse momentarily after the Belhalla Massacre and stayed long enough for Fee and Ced to remember him. The details of how Arvis conquered the entire continent, especially the circumstances under which Silesse was vassalized, is also mostly glossed over in canon, and I kinda wanted to fill in some blanks.
> 
> I hope my interpretations do these wonderful characters some justice.


	2. Even Without the Blood of the Gods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erinys proves her worth as queen.

"You would use Forseti to kill your own people?"

"I did it to my uncles," Lewyn growled, his voice low, cold. "Why should these traitors be dealt with any differently?"

His tone was eerily unfamiliar -- it hardly sounded like the idealistic Lewyn she knew from childhood, nor did he resemble the serious but caring Lewyn who emerged following her sister's death. The Lewyn now frightened her, but Erinys set her jaw, determined. She was no longer the naive, powerless pegasus knight-in-training; she had survived through grief and war, just as he did, and, perhaps if those nobles witnessed firsthand her prowess in battle, they would no longer belittle her for her lack of holy blood. 

Perhaps she would no longer think lesser of herself, for not having been born with holy blood. 

"I will go bring them to justice. There is not enough time to catch them on foot, but on the backs of pegasi, we will barely be able to reach them before they reach the border."

He paused, furrowing his brows as if he was going to object, but he only asked, "Will you be alright?"

Despite herself, she smiled, happy to hear the concern in his voice. He was still as she remembered; his former coldness was just her imagination. It must have been. 

"I am more than capable, as you know."

He sighed, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and drawing her to his chest. "That isn't a reason for me not to worry."

Not even a month following Lewyn’s declaration that there would not be a Silesian war for independence, news reached the capital of Lord Hanish of Zaxon and Lord Anvidar of Lubeck leading a small army of wind mages south into the desert. 

The wind tomes of Silessian mages were indeed known to be the fastest magic of the Jugdral continent; however the borders of the Grannvale mainland were fiercely guarded by the Roten Ritter of House Velthomer, the very squadron that had decimated Sigurd's army, and the wind magic of Silesse was ill-matched against their meteor and fire tomes. 

However, despite the odds of going against the Velthomer knights, this incident only fanned the desire for war in the nobles, many of whom quickly made their excuses back to their dukedoms to squeeze more funds out of their people and assemble their own armies. 

Geographically, Silesse castle was well positioned to intercept the two other prominent duchies of the country, whose castles were further from the Silesian border, but by the time Lewyn was informed of the pair of rebelling dukes, they had gained enough ground that they would be well into the desert, or, even worse, enemy territory before Lewyn could lead a force to intercept them, and then war would truly become inevitable. 

The new reign of Emperor Arvis had ushered in years of peace, and though it was strict, being a vassal state was tolerable, preferable to the calamity of war. The taxes were not exorbitant, and save for the yearly tribute and occasional imperial orders, Silesse was, in effect, left to govern itself. However the peace could easily be broken if news, or even rumors, of radical independents reached Belhalla, and Lewyn feared that the empire would install a foreign viceroy to oppress the Silessian people, like they had in Isaach. 

Upon receiving the news of his rebelling vassals, Lewyn was furious, and he nearly insisted on heading out immediately -- alone if he had to -- before Erinys caught him, unwilling -- and afraid -- to let him engage with them. Eventually, she convinced him to let her go in his place -- he would never catch up to them on foot, and, as King, he needed to stay in the capitol, in case the other dukes raised their own armies and started marching south. 

She left the next morning at first light with three squadrons of Pegasus knights, two of them under command of knights Erinys had personally trained while she led the third herself. Their small force caught up to the dissenters in three days, to witness the young lords experiencing firsthand the difficulties of crossing the desert on foot. 

Mobility was frustratingly slow, and visibility poor when wind from the nearby mountains kicked the sands into a storm. Heat strokes during the day and scorpions and snakes in the night were quick to take the lives of reckless soldiers and erode the spirits of the underprepared army. What was left of it now suffered from disillusionment and frustration, and desertions were growing more frequent. 

“It seems like we didn’t need to come after all.” One of her knights remarked contemptuously, observing the rebel army with distaste. “Yied Desert is doing our job for us.”

“There is nothing to be gained by watching them die.” Erinys said. “And they are still our countrymen. Our only adversaries here are the Dukes Hanish and Anvidar. We need only to talk some sense to the rest.”

“Understood, my queen.” 

The two dukes, brothers orphaned by the imperial skirmishes before Queen Rahna surrendered, were about Erinys' age when she fought with Sigurd's army, and she tried to convince them to yield, to peacefully turn themselves in, despite knowing that their pride and their youth would not allow them to admit defeat. It took the death of two wind mages and one of her pegasus knights incapacitating the younger Anvidar before the remaining Duke Hanish stepped forward, brandishing an Elwind tome, challenging Erinys to single combat. 

He belittled her, like many of the nobles in Silesse who had grown too proud of their own heritage to do anything but flaunt their pedigree. She heard all the thinly veiled insults and whispers at court, all to the tune of upstart, commoner, whore, without a drop of holy blood yet dared to court the heir of Forseti. She was easy prey in the castle, where rumors and bloodlines spoke louder than individual ability. 

She was all too vulnerable without the safety of a lance in her hand to prove her worth nor the support of a pegasus to weather the blows. But here, on the battlefield, as she raised her lance, she vowed that with this last act of violence, she would show Silesse that her path was not one to be crossed lightly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I hope my quickly google'd geography of Silesse and Jugdral is correct... I know these shady politics and war details are not exactly as nuanced as, say, game of thrones, but I tried. whelp. criticism/opinions very much appreciated)
> 
> Also the OC minor characters' names are very quick google searches meaning "one who forewarns of storms" (Hanish) and "against the wind" (Anvindr, which I misspelled to make vowels more comfortable). These guys kinda grew on me (even though they are quite dead) so I made their motivations more nuanced - ie. wanting revenge for their parents instead of just wanting more independence and power and war glory 
> 
> \--
> 
> On the main characters of this drabble:
> 
> I never really liked Erinys/Fury as a character (I love her character design though, and her op lance skills + mobility, haha), and I almost feel as if she grew on me only because she ended up being one of the tragic heroines who died off screen (like Ayra in the FE4 manga and Tailtiu). 
> 
> I wanted to show her development post-war, as a result of living through Balhalla, and also at least a few months without Lewyn, she must have learned to be independent. Basically, I really didn't buy the fact that naive Erinys would have made it as queen of a whole country with that same personality. So I made this drabble on how she might have developed, and how the people came to respect her for who she is (despite the fact that she has no holy blood). 
> 
> And since we have more liberties in fanfic than in game (what is morality in the face of exp?), I wanted to portray a bit of Erinys' kindhearted side when she refuses to wipe out the whole army (I guess she hit her level cap, lol). I think someone in gen2 also pointed out that Fee took after her mother's kindness and wanting to help people or something... so I wanted to show Erinys being merciful and such. I hope I did her character justice! 
> 
> (And also sprinkled in a touch of the gradual descent of Forsetti/Lewyn)
> 
> (Also, sorry for this long note)


	3. The Selfish King

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lewyn fights against the whisperings of the wind ...
> 
> and comes to a depressing conclusion

_This pact will destroy you._

"I am willing to pay any price. I promised... I promised Ced to show him how to fly. I promised Fee to play the flute for her. I promised Erinys that I would return. I promised... I promised..."

* * *

It had been seven years since the massacre at Belhalla, and with each passing day, the wind whispered louder in Lewyn's ears, with greater urgency, _Leave. Leave now, before it's too late._

The dark god was stirring again at the heart of the Jugdral continent, and Lewyn -- no, Forseti -- knew that if he did not act, and fast, he and his cult would try to destroy humanity again. 

_Just a little longer,_ Lewyn had protested. _Just until Silesse is at peace again._

_Just until Fee and Ced are grown, until Erinys learns to rule the kingdom without me._

Now for the first time since his father's reign, Silesse finally enjoyed some years free of internal conflict. Following the almost-rebellion five years ago, Lewyn had replaced the traitorous lords of Zaxon and Lubeck with the mayors of nearby towns. Well-versed in matters of diplomacy and caring more for their people than their hold on power, their only flaw was their lack of holy blood needed to protect the castle under siege. But in times of peace, what use were magic tomes or holy weapons? 

Silesse was prospering -- 

_Silesse_ alone _was prospering,_ accused Forseti

\-- and the call of the wind grew ever louder.

But as he watched Fee take to the sky on the back of a pegasus and taught Ced to conjure gusts of wind, as he woke to the tender smile of Erinys and swelled with pride looking out over his kingdom, he grew less and less concerned about the fate of the world -- Silesse was where he belonged, of that he was now sure -- he became less and less willing to embark on his quest. On Forseti's quest. 

Forseti was adamant, even though it was taboo for a dragon to meddle in the affairs of men. _The threat was all too real this time,_ his consciousness insisted in Lewyn's mind, _Arvis' twins, a son and a daughter, one of the two certainly possessed the blood of the dark god, and they would be his next vessel._

All Lewyn needed to do was prevent the dark tome from falling into the hands of the twin who inherited Lyoptous' power. 

_Just a little longer. The twins have not manifested their holy blood yet. Surely, it can wait. Just a little longer._

And so he stalled and waited, until winter brought blizzards howling portentously across Silesse, preventing him from traveling. The abating storms were followed by ominous news of the appearance of a dark brand on the forehead of Prince Julius, and the suspicious circumstances of Queen Deirdre's death, and by the time Lewyn arrived at Belhalla, it was far too late.

The boy was gone, and Lyoptous had taken his place.

The death of Deirdre had broken Emperor Arvis, serving only to increase the influence of the Lyotpr cult on the Empire. The tenuous peace that Arvis had achieved for the people vanished without a trace across the Yugdral continent almost overnight. The child hunts started again, and Lewyn traveled from town to town, castle to castle, country to country -- further and further from the familiar winds of Silesse -- trying to save innocent lives. 

And Lewyn despaired. It had been his selfishness, his inaction, his concern for his own country that had blinded him from duty, from the task only he could accomplish. Now, not only Grannvale, not only Silesse, but the whole Jugdral continent would be forced to suffer for his mistakes. 

When Lewyn finally found an opportunity to return to Silesse, nearly three years after his departure, to prepare his homeland for the impending doom, he found that the peace that he had painstakingly crafted had fallen apart during his absence.

The nobles from the west, who prided themselves on their minor Forseti blood and their wind mage armies, had found reason to quarrel with the lords of the east, men from commoner backgrounds without holy blood, whom Lewyn had appointed some seven years prior. 

Despite Queen Erinys' best efforts, the second civil war of Silesse in less than a decade had plunged the country into disorder and bloodshed, adding to the havoc that Lyoptous wreaked across the Jugdral continent. 

The people of Silesse, though initially hopeful for their King's return, eventually came to blame Lewyn for the conflict. 

If only King Lewyn had stayed to keep the peace. 

If only King Lewyn had not put powerless men in charge of dukedoms. 

It was all his fault. 

And Lewyn knew he could never again return to that life he once took for granted, that of the proud King Lewyn of Silesse. He had failed, failed his people, failed the world, and nothing he could do could possibly atone for that. 

In the years following, he watched from the skeletal remains of fallen castles, from the shadows of dark forests, from the ruins of burned villages as the newly resurrected Lyoptous exacted his cruel revenge against humanity, watching with despair at the blood and terror they unleashed across the realm, desperately saving as many of their victims as he could. 

But no matter how many children he saved, Lewyn knew there were that many more he was unable to save, would never be able to save.

No matter how many children he saved, Lewyn could not wash his hands clean of the responsibility he had in allowing the dark god once again into their midst. 

After years of witnessing firsthand the horrors of Loptous' reign, Lewyn found himself truly unable to feel anything but guilt and self-disgust. Where had he gone wrong, for everything he held dear to slip through his fingers like water? 

In resignation, he let the wind god overwhelm his consciousness, his last thoughts on his evasion of duty to play at being a bard, his complacency after enforcing a false peace in Silesse, his self-serving pact with Forseti, and feeling only regret.

_Perhaps I was simply just a selfish bastard all along._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And those are more or less my headcanons on the Forseti possession and my thoughts on perhaps why Lewyn snapped when Seliph called him "King." Also kinda explains why he can't return to Silesse (since the people there kinda hate him now). 
> 
> In the ambiguous exchange at the beginning of this chapter, I tried to set up Forseti reviving Lewyn as a sort of "pact" (or geas) that they exchanged, where Forseti would possess Lewyn to save humanity and such in exchange for saving his life after Manfroy roasts him.
> 
> The part about him knowing about Julius and being in a position to stop Manfroy and Lyoptr cult and all is pure speculation. I'm also not too certain about the exact details of the canon geas that Lewyn is supposed to be under, or the taboo of the dragons towards meddling too much in human affairs, but if there are any discrepancies between this and canon, please let me know! (again, also very welcome to all criticisms/opinions!)
> 
> I thought it would be a depressing but believable character arc for Lewyn to be too idealistic (kinda like his son Ced in FE5 trying to take on too much by himself) and end up failing in his goals of ensuring peace and prosperity in Silesse as well as in the continent as a whole.
> 
> And since he seemed to have failed on all fronts (being a good king like he promised to his mother and saving humanity as part of his pact with Forseti), he believes that he hadn't grown from his selfish, irresponsible days as a wandering bard hiding his identity as prince. Ultimately, he loses faith in himself and lets Forseti take over his mind, and the rest, as they say, is history/  
> 


	4. Even Without the Comfort of Your Presence (I)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is a tenuous peace in Silesse following Lewyn's sudden disappearance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I wasn't planning on writing past Chapter 3, but I ended up getting too many ideas and this happened. 
> 
> Everything after Chapter 3 explores the aftermath of Lewyn's disappearance, though beware of OC's and OOC characters and heavy angst and amateur war tactics and sketchy politics...
> 
> You have been warned.

It had been two long years since Lewyn's disappearance, and only the threat of Erinys' lance and the pegasus knights of Silesse under her command kept the power-hungry nobles at bay. Even the mayor-lords to the east, who had grown greedier following their ascents to power, were beginning to ask more of her, troops to guard their towns, funds to furnish their halls, as if doing so might elevate their station to equal that of the older houses of nobility. 

Her pounding headache was doing nothing to help alleviate her frustration as she spent the better part of the afternoon arguing with the western lords, whose impudence grew with every day that Lewyn stayed away. 

"Surely, Your Majesty must know where he is. The Kingdom of Silesse without Forseti -- the very thought is preposterous!" 

"We have no need of Forseti in times of peace, my lord." She said, for perhaps the third time that month.

"With all due respect, Your Majesty," remarked Lord Buran of Thove, "the rumors of the King having reverted to his wayward teenage days and abandoning his kingdom are spreading across Silesse. He must return to quell the fears of the people."

Erinys blinked hard against the pain between her eyes, her ears ringing, leaving her unable to hear the words coming from the lord's lips. Suddenly, the faces of the council blurred together with the wood of the table, with the mural of Ced the Crusader on the ceiling.

She staggered backwards, holding a hand up to her head and trying in vain to relieve the throbbing in her skull, before the floor rushed up to meet her.

* * *

"Mother!" The young prince of Silesse, Lewyn's 10-year-old son named after the progenitor of Silessian royalty, scrambled to Erinys' side. She lay still where she fell, her eyes closed, the marble tiles beneath her head turning red with her blood. 

The queen's knights, a pair of pegasus lancers, also cried out in alarm, rushing to her side, and the room was suddenly thrust into chaos, the lords surging forward to the queen, the mayors scrambling up from their chairs in surprise. Standing in the shadows of the council room, the lord of Silesse's westernmost castle, Melvar of Sailane, wore a cold smile on his lips, glancing over to the dumbfounded Lord Buran, whose words had seemingly caused Queen Erinys to fall. 

_The fool,_ Lord Melvar sneered. He promptly left the room, hollering for help. And even as he barked orders to the maids and healers of Castle Silesse, feigned concern over the Queen, and gave the distraught Fee and Ced his sympathies, all he felt in his heart was triumph.

* * *

Erinys woke from her stupor after sleeping for a day and a night, much to the relief of the council -- what would they say to Lewyn, if his beloved queen had died during his absence? -- while the healers gave their deepest apologies for not noticing her illness beforehand. 

Now, two days after the incident, she was well enough to sit up in bed; she had attempted to rise yesterday, but the room had spun circles around her the moment she tried to stand. But if there was anything to be grateful for, it was that she received fewer visitors and petitions out of concern for her health. The western lords of Thove and Sailane, Buran and Melvar respectively, now stood at the base of her bed, heads lowered in deference. 

"I understand that I have you to thank for my life, Lord Melvar." He had indeed been the only person to have thought to call for healers the moment Erinys fell. The migraine was not discovered to be anything more than fatigue, her head wound causing only a minor concussion that had thankfully been treated quickly. 

"Your Majesty exaggerates." The lord bowed, smiling. "I was only doing what was expected."

"Well, is there anything I can do to repay you?"

"My Queen, I would like to humbly request that I be given leave to return to Sailane for the remainder of the year."

Erinys cocked her head, confused. Usually the lords were stuck like a thorn to her side, hovering over the capitol like vultures and fighting over every scrap of meat they could find. What suddenly made him so eager to leave?

"I'm sure Your Majesty would like some quiet to recover, and," Lord Melvar paused, though his face was lowered, and Erinys could not see the expression he wore. "With all due respect, Your Majesty's recent illness has led me to feel some concern for my own wife and children." 

Erinys had never known the man to be so interested of the welfare of his family, though truthfully she could not claim to know any of the nobles well enough to uncover the full meaning behind their words, laced with courtesy and half-truths. But she agreed to his requests; he had saved her life after all, and if he wanted to take along with him Lord Buran of Thove to arrange a betrothal between their children, she had no grounds to refuse him. 

It was only after a scroll, bound by the seal of Thove, delivered news of Lord Buran's dissent with the east that Erinys realized she might have made a grave error in letting the men back to their castles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is set two years after Lewyn leaves to confront Manfroy to prevent him from reviving Loptous (only to discover that he's too late, see chapter 3), and he ends up wandering around the continent to try and stop what he can of their reign of terror. 
> 
> I kinda tried to demonstrate Erinys' strength of character in Chapter 2, and so I wanted to connect some loose ends on what might have caused the second bout of civil war I alluded to in Chapter 3 if she had already established her competence during the almost-rebellion in Chapter 2.
> 
> I made some more OC's to give the antagonists a name...  
> Melvar, who Lewyn called out in Chapter 1, is Lord of Sailane to the west (previous residence of Sigurd when he sought refuge in Silesse), and his lackey Buran is Lord of Thove in the north (previously held by one of Lewyn's uncles during their first civil war).
> 
> In case anyone is curious,  
> Buran is a strong north-easterly wind that is hot in the summer and freezing in the winter.  
> Melvar was something random I came up with on the fly in Ch. 1, but I guess it sounds similar to Melvin, meaning "bad town" and I think I'll roll with that. This was all according to plan.


	5. Even Without the Comfort of Your Presence (II)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The embers of a second Silessian civil war flicker into existence

A month after her fall in the council room, Erinys was feeling as right as rain -- perhaps the lack of council meetings had been just the medicine she needed. But as soon as she was well enough to walk on her own feet across the castle and even take Fee or Ced with her when she went flying on her pegasus, the threat of civil war again loomed over the Kingdom of Silesse. 

A week after Erinys received the report of an army of mages marching down from the northern forests near Thove from one of the pegasus knights on patrol, Lord Buran himself sent a letter justifying his actions. 

There was news of a dark cult spreading chaos in the lands to the south, he wrote, and the borders of Silesse cannot be adequately defended by commoners should they dare molest our kingdom. 

"So Lord Buran is going to reinforce Lubeck and Zaxon?" Asked the nine-year-old Fee as she helped her mother saddle her pegasus. 

"Of course not," Ced huffed. A year older than Fee, he was the spitting image of Lewyn, save for the bits of fat that still clung to his cheeks and his mismatched green-and-brown eyes. "He's just using that as an excuse to claim the castles for himself."

The way his upper lip curled in anger reminded Erinys too much of his father, and she smiled wryly. "Take care of your sister while I'm gone, Ced."

"Will do." He mumbled, kicking at a pebble beside his feet. Ced was still sulking after his request to join the battle was rejected. He had long since learned to use the wind tome his father had left for him two years back, and he was eager to show the kingdom that he could take the place of the missing King.

However, his mother was not as excited as he over the prospect of war, and she had only laughed when he came to her with Lewyn's old cape fastened across his shoulders, the ends dragging along the floor. 

"One day, when you're old enough, it will be your duty to protect Silesse, from external threats and sometimes from itself, regardless of whether or not you want to fight." She had told him. "But it is still too soon. And if you leave, who will remain to protect Fee? To protect our castle?"

He had grudgingly acquiesced, but in his mind he settled on blaming his father, from whom they hadn't heard from since his mysterious departure two years past. If he was here, they wouldn't have any reason to go to war at all. The name of the Forseti tome alone could frighten the vassal dukes to submission, but Lewyn had taken the symbol of Silessian royal power south with him as well. 

And when Ced questioned Erinys about his missing father, she had only smiled gently, telling him, "He will be back, I'm sure of it," her expression forbidding him from asking further. 

* * *

When Erinys and her army of pegasus knights arrived at Zaxon a week later, she was surprised to hear that the Thove army had not passed by their castle. The only path for mages to travel was south and east from Thove, since their path was mostly blocked by the central mountain ranges. 

She had assumed that the quickly moving Thove army had already taken Silesse's two eastern duchies, but perhaps Lubeck was still holding out. Or, perhaps, Lord Buran had truly intended on only reinforcing the castles on the eastern border. Perhaps Fee had been right. 

Her optimism was quickly dashed when she arrived at Lubeck to find a few mage squadrons and Lord Buran himself laying siege to the castle with wind magic. She was just in time then. 

"What do you think you're doing, Lord Buran?" She shouted from across the battlefield. 

The lord did not seem the least bit surprised to see her, and he coldly replied, "Providing proof that we cannot trust these men to guard our eastern front." 

"Stop this at once!" She cried, advancing forward to meet him before he could cast the final spell to kill the old lord, the previous mayor of the neighboring town whom Lewyn had appointed as duke. "Why must you insist on hurting your own people? Is this how a noble of Silesse acts?"

"Don't speak as if you haven't spilled your fair share of Silessian blood, my Queen." Lord Buran spat. "Unlike these powerless upstarts, we are the rightful nobles of Silesse and heirs to Forseti's blood, and we have have had enough of your tyranny. It is time that a rightful heir of Forseti sits on the throne, one that will lead us to independence rather than force us to rot away in complacency." 

_We?_ Erinys wondered. _Was he referring to the western lord Melvar? Were they still holding a grudge over Lewyn's appointment of commoners as lords?_

But before she could interrogate him on his motives, Lord Buran drew an ox horn from his hip and lifted it to his lips, and the low bass note echoed across the plain. 

"What are --"

From the Zaxon Castle to their rear, wind mages filed out from the surrounding forests, all of them in adorned in the robes of Thove. She would discover later that Lord Buran had split his forces. After he conquered Zaxon, he threatened the lord there to lie about having yet to encounter Thove soldiers, before leaving half his force in the castle and the surrounding woodlands to catch Erinys and her retinue in between the two duchies. 

The two halves of Lord Buran’s army closed in on them, and just as she thought all was lost, preparing to go down spear in hand, she heard the voice of Lord Melvar. 

“Halt!”

Erinys turned toward the southern half of Buran’s army, finding the troops that had assembled behind them bearing Sailane's insignia. 

She hesitated. _Weren’t the two western lords on good terms with one another? Wasn’t Lord Melvar part of the plot?_

“What madness is this!” Lord Melvar cried. “Lord Buran! You dare attack our Queen with her own people?” 

“Lord Melvar!” Buran stepped forward to shout back across the quiet field. “You told me you were going to topple Silesse Castle!” 

“Me? To the capital?” Lord Melvar scoffed. “I was dealing with the Orgahill pirates until I received word of your treason, Buran."

" _My_... treason...?"

"You disappoint me." Lord Melvar shook his head, and then stretched out his arm. “Men, strike down the blasted traitor and his rebel army!”

“Lord Melvar! You deceived me!”

And the plains between the castles of Zaxon and Lubeck erupted into chaos.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... And I have no idea how to write war scenes.
> 
> (Also, please pretend the lords are really good at screaming at each other from across the battlefield...)


	6. This Side of the Bars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two conversations between Lord Melvar of Sailane and Lord Buran of Thove, and the aftermath of Buran's failed rebellion.

"To think you had planned for this all along!" 

"Lord Buran, it is only a matter of time before our ambitions are realized, but we must act quickly, while our queen is still bedridden. When you return to Thove, assemble an army to usurp the commoner lords. When the royal troops come to meet you, trap them between the two castles if you can, stall them if you can't, and I will head south to seize the capital."

"Won't there be men left there to defend it?"

"Erinys, should she recover by the time we attack, is the only one to fear; the pegasus knights of the kingdom now are a far cry from the four Holy Pegasus Knights of Queen Rahna's time, or even the pegasus knights from the reign of King Lewyn's father; Silesse Castle is as good as undefended. As soon as I capture Prince Ced, I will head east to regroup with you and force the queen to surrender."

"Have no worries, Lord Melvar, the queen is too naive to believe that we are truly committing treason. I am perfectly capable of subduing her and her pegasus knights alone. All you need to worry about is securing the true heir to Forseti's blood."

* * *

"To think you are shameless enough to show your face to me after all you've done." Lord Buran spat from behind the bars, his fine Thove robes tattered and his face marred with blows. 

"All I've done?" Lord Melvar asked, a thin smile on his lips. 

"I will tell the Queen everything during the trial, including your plot during the reign of Queen Rahna, including the part you played in this farce."

"Not to worry, Buran; I've already told the Queen everything."

"Everything...?"

"Yes, everything. Enough that you might consider choosing your lies carefully before telling them to our furious queen."

"Melvar, why, my friend? Why did you betray me?" Buron asked. "We were both on the same side! We could have ruled Silesse together!"

"Friends, perhaps once." Lord Melvar lowered his voice. "But Silesse has no use for a second regent. There are still some five years before Ced is of age to rule alone. That is more than enough time to take control of the capital, more than enough time for our queen -- well, I've spoken too much.

"I'm afraid I must bid you goodbye now, Lord Buran," Melvar spread his hands, his expression almost apologetic. "I must report to Queen Erinys before the sun sets. Don't worry, Buran; I will make sure to take care of your wife and children, even though your family is now nothing more than a family of traitors."

"Melvar!" The former lord grabbed the bars to his jail cell in anger, spittle flying from his mouth as he raged at his former friend. "Damn it, Melvar! _You_ are the traitor! You're the one who --"

"Traitor? Me?" Melvar laughed, turning away. "I'm a hero, Buran. That's why I'm standing on this side of the bars."

* * *

Two days after he was imprisoned following his rebellion at the castles of Lubeck and Zaxon, Lord Buran was found dead in his cell. 

After some investigation, it was discovered that he had withdrawn a dagger from within his robes and sliced open his own throat. In the dead of the night, there were whispers to the tune of murder, rumors of the secrets that the former lord carried with him to his grave.

But with his death, the kingdom of Silesse fell back into an uneasy peace. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The topmost conversation is held before the rebellion, and the second in the aftermath.


	7. Even Without Any Certainty for the Future

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Lyoptr cult finds its way into Silesse.

Two months had passed since Lord Buran's death, and an uneasy peace had settled upon Silesse. 

To the north, there were news of riots in Thove, of townspeople molesting the widow and children of the traitorous Lord Buran despite Queen Erinys' orders for clemency. From the south, there were rumors of a revived dark god and his cult that grew louder with each day. At court, the council complained in hushed tones of the growing influence of Lord Melvar, duke of Sailane to the west. 

With the death of Lord Buran, the duke was the remaining member of Silesse's council with the mark of Forseti's blood, inscribed on the back of his palm. His growing influence on the queen angered the lords of Zaxon and Lubeck, though they feared that he, like Lord Buran, would lay siege to their castles with his wind mages if they dared to speak out against him. 

However, Queen Erinys did her best to assist with the rebuilding of the eastern towns and duchies that Lord Buran's attack had destroyed, an effort that Lord Melvar seemed to support. 

"I don't trust him," Ced told his mother. He had only just turned eleven, but his eyes seemed far older that those befitting a boy of his age. 

_He is too young for this._ Erinys frowned, wondering, not for the first time that month, what had caused her son to grow up so quickly. 

(She knew the answer, truthfully, but she feared that acknowledging it would extinguish the last vestiges of hope she had left.)

"We must rely on Lord Melvar and his minor Forseti blood for protection now," Erinys sighed, covering her son's hand with her own. "Especially with the rumors from the south..."

"Are you alright, Mother?" Ced asked, his brows furrowing in concern. "Your hands are freezing."

She had smiled and apologized to her son and gave her excuses, but truthfully she was growing more and more weary -- of rulership, of feeling so utterly _alone_ in the country she had once fondly thought of as home. She had accepted Lord Melvar's help and let him in her confidences in hopes that it would alleviate some of the burden on her shoulders, but she felt as if her body was getting heavier by the day -- or were her muscles growing weaker by the hour? -- and the fatigue manifested in headaches and moments of irritability and impatience she barely managed to stifle. 

Finally, the days of strained peace were harshly interrupted by news of the Lyoptr cult having found its way to Lubeck, whose people were still suffering the effects of Lord Buran's attack two months prior. 

"You mustn't, my Queen," Lord Melvar had advised her. "The risk is too high. Your Majesty, forgive me for saying this, but you are too important to the kingdom; if you were to lose your life fighting --"

"I cannot leave innocent lives to die out of concern for my own safety." She had told him resolutely. 

Erinys set out early the next morning with a few squadrons of pegasus knights, and though the weight of her lance in her hands was suddenly heavier and more uncomfortable than she remembered, she was more concerned for the well-being of the old mayor-turned-lord and the safety of the people of Lubeck. 

When she arrived after two days of nearly nonstop flight, most of the surrounding villages had been reduced to little more than smoldering piles of ash. Despairing, she flew toward Lubeck castle, and breathed a sigh of relief as she saw that the gates had yet to be breached, though the mages of the dark cult flung waves of black magic against the cracks in the walls. 

Lance in hand, she charged forward, discharging many of the dark robed mages before they had the time to raise their tomes. 

By the time the battlefield fell silent, the remaining forces of the Lyoptous cult fleeing into the surrounding forests, Erinys was breathing hard from exhaustion, barely able to hold onto her lance, even with both hands. Had she always been this quick to tire? 

But the bloodshed and her efforts were rewarded with the cheers and tears of relief shed by the survivors of the siege; the Lord of Lubeck had assembled the men, women, and children from the surrounding villages before the cult had attacked and had sheltered them in the castle. Unfortunately, during the fighting, the lord had fallen victim to the dark spells after he tried unsuccessfully to negotiate a peace with them, leaving his proud and hot-blooded son in charge of the survivors. 

After a month of overseeing the efforts at rebuilding, Erinys declared that she needed to leave for the capital, leaving them with promises of lifting their taxes for the year and otherwise doing her best to assist them. She was growing more and more concerned about Ced and Fee, and the actions of Lord Melvar.

She had been feeling better after resting at Lubeck for the month, but they were a day's flight from Silesse castle when the headaches that had plagued her during her time at court had returned with a vengeance. She and her small army had been preparing to depart, when she was suddenly overcome with dizziness as she mounted her pegasus.

"Are you alright, Your Majesty?" From beside her, one of her pegasus knights looked at her with concern. "You're awfully pale."

But before she could give the young knight a reply, she suddenly lost the strength in her body, she felt the world tilt before her eyes, and her feet slipped from the stirrups.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew. This chapter was kinda difficult to write, but hopefully there's some nice foreshadowing in here for some future events.
> 
> (Also writing this fanfic has really made me realize how different the game mechanics are different from actual warfare and how much details are omitted of life outside of the fighting)


	8. This Gambit of Evil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Melvar continues his machinations behind the scenes.

Silesse Castle was thrown into a panic when the queen, pale and unconscious and non-responsive, was delivered back to the capital after her philanthropic excursion to the east. 

And Melvar almost laughed. His gamble was paying off, and not a moment too soon. 

He set to work immediately, taking leave to "assist" in the repair of Lubeck Castle and the surrounding towns. When he reached the castle, he was even more delighted to discover that the old mayor, whom Lewyn had appointed as lord some seven years prior, had kicked the bucket during the fighting. 

It did not take very long for him to convince the new lord, the mayor's hot-blooded son, to launch an expedition to the northern castle of Thove, whose riches they were _surely_ entitled to for the rebuilding of their towns, whose former lord had weakened the castle's fortification and were truly the ones at fault for the destruction dealt by the Lyoptr cult. 

When his work was finished, and the lord had gathered some troops of dubious origins to strike at Thove, news reached Lubeck of Queen Erinys' recovery. She had been in a coma for two weeks and had finally reawakened, and she was summoning him back to the capital. 

Melvar arrived in a week, and by then the queen had healed enough to rise from bed and walk with her own strength, though it was still too early for her to partake in strenuous activity. And even though she looked more haggard than he remembered, her voice still commanded attention, and she seemed fully capable of making a recovery, of once again leading armies, lance in hand. 

Melvar smiled thinly. The woman was sure resilient. "I'm happy to see you well again, Your Majesty." 

Then, news reached court of bands of brigands, led by the young lord of Lubeck, heading north toward Thove. 

Queen Erinys, for the first time unable to personally put down the insurgency, was forced to mobilize the pegasus knights of Silesse without their most experienced commander. Instead, she gave him command over the troops, ordering him to capture the insurgents alive.

"Which ones, my queen? The family of the traitor Buran, or the power-hungry rebels of Lubeck?"

"All of them." She was still so idealistic. "They are still our people, and they deserve to explain themselves. Please, Melvar, you are the only one I can ask. I will join you as soon as I am able, but, please, try to prevent the fighting for as long as you are able." 

"Yes, Your Majesty," He bit the inside of his cheeks to hold back the smile that pulled at the corners of his lips. "I will most certainly try."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I'm not sure what this says about me, but I really enjoy writing the evil characters...)


End file.
